“An actor is totally vulnerable. His total personality is exposed to critical judgment – his intellect, his bearing, his diction, his whole appearance. In short, his ego.” – Alec Guinness

“I don’t know what else I could do but pretend to be an actor.” – Alec Guinness

“All creative people hate mathematics. It’s the most uncreative subject you can study.” – Alec Guinness

“A person who is keen to shake your hand usually has something up his sleeve.” – Alec Guinness

“There seems to be no end to the senseless wickedness done on this little planet in a minor solar system, and we puny mortals appear to be decreasing in importance so far as the universe is concerned.” – Alec Guinness

“I never knew how good it is to be unknown until now. The last time I was unknown I was too busy trying to become known to realize the advantages of obscurity.” – Alec Guinness

“Young men make wars, and the virtues of war are the virtues of young men: courage, and hope for the future. Then old men make the peace, and the vices of peace are the vices of old men: mistrust and caution.” – Alec Guinness

“Styling is designing for obsolescence.” – Alec Guinness

“That’s no moon. It’s a space station” – Alec Guinness

“Much of the day I have busied myself making notes on the small parts in Shakespeare, often nameless, which are rewarding to the actor if only he’ll not dismiss them as beneath his dignity. If I can work it up into a talk I might call it, ‘Only a cough and a spit ‘ -the phrase so often used by actors to explain away a lack of opportunity.” – Alec Guinness